Recommended Animal Handling Guidelines and Audit Guide

Recommended Animal Handling Guidelines and Audit Guide 2007 EditionThere are six major causes of provoked squeals/vocalizations that include, but are not limited to:1. Electric prod use2. Sharp edges3. Sores or poor body condition4. Pressure from the hold-down rack,5. Sides of a v-restrainer moving at different speeds, and6. Hitting or poking livestock.If you cannot determine a cause, the squeal should be treated as unprovoked.Score pig squeals after the most posterior part of the hind end is past the restrainer entrance.The definition of the restrainer entrance for different types of equipment is listed below.1. V conveyor restrainer – The entrance point is located on the outer circumference of theslats where they turn around the sprocket (pivot).2. Center track conveyor restrainer – The entrance point is located at the point where theconveyor emerges from the housing and is exposed. In the unlikely event that a pig squealsbecause both legs and feet get on one side of the center track, the squeal would be counted.3. Stun box – The entrance point is located on the inside surface of the tailgate.4. Group floor stunning – The entrance point is the gate where the pigs enter the stunning pen.Score after the pigs enter and the gate is closed.5. In plants that use CO 2group stunning systems, squeals should be counted in the final loadingpen where gates move pigs into a gondola or other conveyance.Another simple method for monitoring continuous improvement within a plant is estimatingthe percentage of time that the entire stunning room is quiet. As each pig is stunned, the persondoing the scoring checks off whether or not the room was quiet. The score is the percentage ofstunning cycles where the room was quiet. When CO 2stunning is evaluated, a stunning cycleconsists of the time to fill a gondola. Because vocalization scores can vary by auditor, numberof pigs and by room acoustics, vocalization scores are difficult to compare across plants andshould not be measured by third party auditors. This is for internal use only.However, one can conclude that a plant that has continuous constant squealing may have pigwelfare problems. This method is excellent for internal plant monitoring over time.46AMIHandlingSlaughterGuidelines07.1AMIJune 11, 2007